Qingyu Case: Female Minister of Dali Temple

There are five paintings in total.

Chen Shao put down the evidence, took a painting and spread it out on the table.

It is a picture of autumn chrysanthemums.

Chen Shao had never seen the calligraphy or paintings of the General Fuguo, so he couldn't tell whether the Autumn Chrysanthemum Painting was authentic. He took a quick glance at it and looked at the signature in the lower left corner.

The signature is indeed the name of the General who Assists the State.

Next to the name, there were indeed the official seal and private seal of the General of the State.

Whether you look at the official seal or the private seal roughly or closely, there are no signs of counterfeiting.

I rolled up the Autumn Chrysanthemum Painting and opened the other paintings one by one. It was also impossible to tell whether the paintings were real or fake, but the signatures were the same as the Autumn Chrysanthemum Painting.

After rolling up the last painting and putting it aside, Chen Shao looked up at Ding Lisheng.

If she can't tell the real from the fake, then Ding Lisheng will be even less able to tell the real from the fake.

"Sir," Ding Lisheng felt her gaze on him, his body slowly stiffened, and his teeth began to creak, "I really know I was wrong, please have mercy on me, please have mercy on me."

Chen Shao continued to look at him for a long time before asking, "Who gave you these calligraphy and paintings?"

The shadow of death made Ding Lisheng answer impatiently: "Two of them were given by Master Zhu, and the other three were given by Master Gu, Master Fan, and Master Qi."

"Where's the jade?" Chen Shao deliberately slowed down his speech and asked in a nonchalant tone, "Which company did you buy it from?"

Ding Lisheng cried, "It was not me who wanted to buy it, but they forced me to buy it."

Chen Shao said: "Answer my questions and don't talk nonsense."

"Yes, yes, I know I was wrong." After apologizing instinctively, Ding Lisheng quickly replied, "The jade was purchased from several of their businesses."

Chen Shao asked, "Who did you buy the jade chess piece from?"

Ding Lisheng swallowed back the excuses that were about to come out of his mouth and answered hastily, "I bought it from the caravans of the Zhu and Gu families."

Finally, he could not help but defend himself: "Master Zhu forced me to buy it."

Chen Shao asked casually, "How much silver do you want to buy it for?"

"Three thousand taels." Ding Lisheng answered quickly. In fact, it was one thousand five hundred taels, but one thousand five hundred taels was not enough to reflect his helplessness. Now that death was imminent, the more miserable he acted, the more likely he would survive.

"Didn't you just say that you bought it specially as a gift for Zhang Boshan's new concubine?" A hint of sarcasm flashed across Chen Shao's eyes. It's true that a dog can't change its eating habits.

Ding Lisheng was stuck for a moment, and after a while, he finally explained, "Your humble servant, I do intend to give it to Lord Zhang."

Chen Shao said coldly: "Tell the truth!"

"My Lord, I have a good understanding. I, your humble servant..."

Chen Shao snorted coldly: "Zhang Boshan has been in Hongyuan County for quite a while. If you really want to give him the jade chess piece, you must have given him a lot of top-quality jade over the years. If I don't find enough top-quality jade when I go to Zhang Boshan's house later..."

Ding Lisheng slapped himself twice, "My lord, you are wise. I spent a year's profit from several shops to buy the jade chess piece. I originally planned to keep it as a treasure, but I didn't expect that Du Zhong would steal one of them before I put it away. I was really afraid that you would find out, so I had to lie. I have realized my mistake, and I swear that I will never..."

Chen Shao was too lazy to ridicule him anymore. After he apologized and swore in a monologue, he asked, "Why is the Buddha carved on the jade chess piece a dagger-shaped bun?"

Ding Lisheng shook his head: "I don't know either."

Afraid that she would not believe him, he added, "I really don't know. I asked Master Zhu and Master Gu, and they only said that the General who Assists the State likes this kind of Buddha."

Chen Shao asked, "No other intention?"

Ding Lisheng shook his head at first, then said after a moment: "Whether there is any other intention, I really don't know, but Master Zhu and Master Gu have warned me many times that I am not allowed to sell the jade with the dagger-shaped Buddha statue carved on it to others without their permission."

Chen Shao immediately asked: "Why?"

Ding Lisheng said uncertainly: "They say that only those who are recognized by the General of the State can keep the jade with the dagger-shaped Buddha statue engraved on it."

Chen Shao asked, "How can we be sure that we have received the approval of the General of the State?"

Ding Lisheng looked at the calligraphy and paintings she had put aside.

Chen Shao followed his gaze and took a look at the calligraphy and paintings before continuing to ask, "What kind of jade did you sell to them?"

Ding Lisheng said: "Except for the jade of the dagger-shaped Buddha statue with a fleshy bun, all the others are available."

Chen Shao confirmed: "There are also lotus pattern ones?"

Ding Lisheng nodded: "Yes."

Chen Shao confirmed again: "Can the ones with lotus patterns be sold freely, or are there any restrictions?"

Ding Lisheng said: "There is no limit."

Chen Shao frowned and saw Li Tianliu coming back from afar, so he asked Fu Jiu to lock them both up in the prison and bring Zhang Boshan up.

Ding Lisheng didn't want to be taken away, so Fu Jiu knocked him unconscious with a knife and then dragged him away.

Li Tianliu stood at the door and watched Fu Jiu drag him away before entering the second hall.

When he came closer, Chen Shao pushed the calligraphy and paintings towards him. When he looked at them, he explained the origins of the calligraphy and paintings in detail, and then asked: "Can you identify them? Are they the work of the great general who assists the country?"

After Li Tianliu glanced at the calligraphy and painting, he also looked at the signature on the lower left corner. The moment he saw the signature, his eyes darkened. After seeing the two seals, his eyes darkened again. Without saying a word, he threw the calligraphy and painting aside, picked up the remaining calligraphy and paintings, and after reading all of them, his face was as dark as if it was stained with ink.

"The General will never..." The three words "never" slipped to his lips, but were swallowed back by Li Tianliu. The evidence was right in front of him, and he really couldn't excuse him. But when he thought that the General might betray Datong, join the prince's party of the previous dynasty, or secretly assist the Prince of Guangling in plotting for the throne, he couldn't suppress the anger in his heart.

"Do you still remember what Zhang Zhongcai said?" Seeing that he was so angry that fire was flashing in his eyes, Chen Shao asked with a smile while packing up his calligraphy and paintings.

Li Tianliu looked at her, hope ignited in his eyes: "You mean these calligraphy and paintings are fake?"

Chen Shao smiled and said, "Whether it is fake or not, we can send it to the General of the State for identification and then we will know."

Li Tianliu's eyes flickered for a moment, and he blurted out, "You want to use these calligraphy and paintings to win over the general?"

"What do you mean by wooing?" Chen Shao asked with a smile, "Isn't the General of the State a loyal and capable general of Datong?"

Li Tianliu looked at her, then at the calligraphy and paintings, and said firmly: "You are right, the General of the State has always been a loyal and capable general of Datong!"

Even if he is not, with these calligraphy and paintings, he must be!